I'll Wait Forever
by Mindful Demon
Summary: It started with one of the all-too-frequent instances in which Patricia voiced her mind before thinking about what she was saying... but what it became, well, that was something else entirely. Patricia x Joy. Don't like, don't read. Please review!


It had all started with one of the all-too-frequent situations in which Patricia had voiced her mind before thinking about what she was about to say. She and Joy had been in the kitchen, cleaning up after Alfie and Jerome's latest food fight, and as they entered the living room, Patricia snorted in a mixture of amusement and disgust. Alfie and Jerome were on the floor wrestling, Fabian was sitting on the couch with his laptop doing his 'geek things' as Patricia liked to call them, and Amber and Mick were flirting shamelessly by the coffee table.

"For the love of god…" she muttered. "It's like everyone's paired up except for us!"

Joy looked at her friend quizzically. "Huh?"

Patricia scowled. "Look around! Fabian's totally in love with that new laptop of his, Mick and Amber are… well… Mick and Amber, and as for Alfie and Jerome… well, they're so far back in the closet that they're in fricken Narnia! Everybody's paired off except us! If this doesn't prove that the world is totally messed up, then what does? I mean, we're probably the prettiest girls in this whole house, and we're the only ones who are actually single!" she growled. "Even that laptop's got somebody, and it's not even alive for god's sake!"

Joy laughed quietly. "Prettiest girls in the house? You think I'm pretty?" she teased, batting her eyelashes. Then, in a more serious tone, "Don't worry about it. They'll come around sometime. You probably just haven't met the right…" Joy trailed off as Patricia gave her a look that clearly said 'don't go there with me'. "Okay, so maybe you _have_ met the right person. Not that I would know, because you never tell me _anything _about who you like, but still… Maybe they just haven't realized they're in love with you yet?"

Patricia rolled her eyes, but at least she was smiling. "Yeah, sure. Because that's totally realistic," she sighed, wishing it was true. Then a thought occurred to her, and she laughed.

Joy looked at her, wondering what was wrong with her. "Patricia? What's so funny?"

And that was when it had happened.

Patricia shook her head, still smiling. "Nothing… it's just… I just realized… they're probably thinking the same about us as we're thinking about Alfie and Jerome… As if!"

A slight look of worry momentarily crossed Joy's face as she looked her friend over. Patricia frowned, giving Joy a curious look.

"Did you just… did you just check me out?" she asked, sounding confused.

Joy blinked. "I… uh… what? No. It's just… your shoes don't match your shirt, that's all." She explained hastily.

Patricia looked at her as if trying to figure her out. "I… right. Don't get too fashion conscious on me, or you'll turn into Amber." She said at last, dismissing the incident as no more than a coincidence. After all, it was well known that Joy was straight as a ruler; she'd had several boyfriends in the past, and was currently crushing on someboy named Ryan in her fifth period biology class. It was hardly as if she'd ever be interested in Patricia as anything more than a friend… at least, that was what Patricia told herself.

She had had a crush on Joy since the day that they'd met, but she was getting pretty damn good at concealing her feelings. If anyone, it wasn't Alfie and Jerome who were in Narnia; it was Patrica.

But she refused to accept it. Instead, she liked to pretend that the only reason she didn't have a boyfriend was because none of the boys in Anubis House were good enough for her. She would never admit to herself the _real_ reason behind her infamous status as a loner; she didn't _want_ a boyfriend. She wanted a girlfriend. No one knew this of course. And if she got her way, no one ever would. _Unless_… she shook her head, clearing her thoughts. _Pull yourself together, Patricia. So much for controlling your feelings._

There was a long, painfully awkward silence between them.

"So… do you want to hang out down here for a while? Or just go upstairs?" Patricia prompted, eager to fix her blunder.

Joy blinked, her train of thought derailed. "Yes. I mean, no. Not down here. Upstairs… upstairs would be good." She replied.

Patricia smiled, relieved that she had broken the momentary tension between them. She glanced over at the others one last time, then ran for the stairs, Joy not far behind. They reached their room, and Joy shut the door behind them as Patricia sat down on her bed. As Joy turned around, Patricia could tell that there was something on her mind.

"Joy? Something wrong?"

Joy sighed. "No, nothing."

Patricia rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on. I'm your best friend! Certainly you can tell me, I'm not going to bite."

Joy shook her head. "No, I can't tell you. I… you'd think I was insane."

Patricia laughed shortly as Joy sat down next to her on her bed. "Yeah? Try me. You'd be surprised just how _normal_ insanity is around here."

Silence, then,

"I actually thought about it, okay?" Joy blurted out.

Her friend looked at her curiously. "Huh?"

"You and I. What you said before. I actually thought about it, for a minute." Joy repeated, looking ashamed.

Patricia's heart soared, and it was all she could do just to keep herself from crying out in victory. She restrained herself, looking at Joy seriously. "Oh… well… that's okay." She said, trying her best to sound comforting. Then, as an afterthought, "If it helps… I thought about it too." She admitted.

Joy looked at her, wiping a half-formed tear from her eye. "You did?"

Patricia nodded. "Yeah, I did."

They sat there for a moment, neither really sure what to say, or if there was anything left to say at all.

Joy broke the silence. "Why?"

Patricia, who had been staring at the wall, lost in thought, turned to look at her. "Hm?"

"Why… why did you think about it?" Joy asked, sounding very unsure of herself.

Patricia looked at her, suddenly feeling a lot braver than she had in a long time. She was sick of hiding, sick of pretending to swoon over boys that meant nothing to her… She met Joy's gaze, taking a deep breath.

"Because you're brave, funny, pretty… you've got straight A's, and any boy in his right mind would probably _die_ just for a chance to be with you… who _wouldn't_ think about it?" she said honestly, her cheeks turning a light shade of pink. "So… why did _you_ think about it?"

Joy looked at her, her face already slightly flushed. "You're so nice, and funny… and you're really beautiful, more than Amber, probably… and you're my best friend." Joy said, her voice overflowing with embarrassment. Her face was bright pink now.

Patricia looked at her for a long time.

"You really think I'm prettier than Amber?" she asked at last.

Joy nodded hesitantly. "Yes. I do."

There was a moment of silence, broken as they both spoke at once.

"Patricia, I-"

"Joy, I-"

Patricia smiled, shaking her head in amusement. "You can go first."

Joy took a deep breath. "Patricia, I… I…" she dissolved into incomprehensible muttering as she neared the end of her sentence.

"I'm sorry, I didn't hear you." Patricia said gently.

Joy laughed nervously. She swallowed, hard. She took another deep breath, then, "I'm sorry Patricia, it's just… I… I kindareallylikeyoualot!" she said quickly, then shut her eyes, terrified to see her friend's negative reaction.

Patricia felt as if all he air had been forced from her lungs. She was shocked, lost for words, completely and utterly speechless. Her green eyes were wide, and a searing feeling in her chest reminded her that she'd forgotten to breath.

"Joy, I… I like you too. A lot." She managed to choke out. Joy looked at her, her eyes wide; shocked, disbelieving.

"What?"

"I said I like you too." Patricia whispered, unable to meet her friend's eyes. "And I have, for a really long time. And I know that you're probably really confused right now, and that you haven't made up your mind, but I just want you to know that…"

She didn't get to finish her thought. Patricia gasped as she felt Joy's soft lips against her own, asking an unspoken question.

_Is this real? Is this really happening to us?_

A split second passed, and the initial shock of what had just happened wore off. Patricia melted into the kiss with a quiet whimper as Joy rolled over so that she was on top.

_This is happening._

Every nerve in Joy's body was a livewire as she tangled her hands possessively in Patricia's red hair, pulling her closer. She had wanted this for so long, dreamt about it for so many years… it was hard to believe that was actually happening.

_I don't believe you._

So _this_ was what it felt like to be free. Patricia was on cloud nine as she deepened the kiss, her tongue sliding over Joy's lower lip as if asking permission.

_Let me show you._

Joy let Patricia in with a quiet sigh, feeling passion shoot through her with all the electricity of a bolt of lightning.

_You already have._

***Author's Note***

Reviews are love. Every time you review, a kitten is born and someone throws a water bottle at Justin Bieber's head. Spread the love! =)

Okay, am I really the only one who's thought of this pairing? I certainly hope not... maybe I was just the first one to put my writing up on here. Anyway, I always thought this would be interesting from the first episode. I mean, yeah, sure, Joy was Patricia's friend, but at the same time, her desire to find her is almost obsessive. And what a strange coincidence it is that Patricia is pretty much the only single girl in house of Anubis who isn't involved in some type of love triangle? Maybe she's holding out for someone... :D


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